Newsletter

Connect With Us

Follow Us On Facebook:

Giant Loop MoJavi Saddlebag Review

 Pack light and ride fast for a weekend adventure ride on a small dual sport.

Published on 10.12.2015

Lightweight dual sport motorcycles let you explore challenging off-road terrain at a faster pace and with more confidence than larger Adventure Bikes. They can also get you to remote areas that bigger bikes struggle to reach. But carrying gear on a small dual sport bike for multi-day trips can be challenging and loading a backpack full of heavy equipment may ruin your ride.

A small capacity luggage system like the Giant Loop MoJavi Saddlebag is ideal for carrying just the essentials for a weekend journey riding hotel-to-hotel or an overnighter at a secluded camping spot in the woods. The MoJavi’s small size forces you to be efficient with your packing and its design carries gear low and tight on the bike so that the bike’s handling is minimally impacted.

Materials and Construction

ADVERTISEMENT

The MoJavi Saddlebag is a true saddle bag design with each side connected to a single “U” shaped panel made of Bombshell Trucker’s Tarp. Heavy-duty YKK zippers keep gear contained and a versatile strap system allows the bag to be fit to nearly any bike.

The Giant Loop Mojavi Saddlebag is designed to carry your gear low and tight on your bike so you can minimize the impact of the weight on the bike’s handling.

The construction of the MoJavi Saddlebag is solid with stitching and seams that are tough as nails. All of the stressed portions of the bag are reinforced with continuous strips of nylon webbing to keep everything firmly attached to the bike. Subtle black-on-black graphics give the MoJavi an understated appearance, while a smooth coating on the exterior resists wear and can be wiped clean easily.

The MoJavi Saddlebag is water-resistant enough for light rain but it’s not completely waterproof. However, Giant loop does offer inserts that make them 100% waterproof.

Installation

Installation is quick and easy on nearly any motorcycle with a conventional front fuel tank and no rack. The bag drapes over the back of the bike and falls into position naturally. Giant Loop keeps it simple with a minimal amount of straps and getting it mounted is intuitive.

The inner lip of the saddlebag tucks under the back edge of the seat for increased stability and two lower straps attach to the subframe while two additional rear straps secure the bag to the rear fender. Giant Loop Quick Mounts can also be used as a strap attachment point to avoid contact with the hot exhaust. Side bags sit on top of the rear number plate away from the exhaust silencer.

The MoJavi Saddlebag keeps the profile of the bike nice and slim for squeezing through tight spaces and doesn’t get in the way when throwing a leg over the bike.

The long and narrow side bags are great for packing larger items and they stay out of your way when riding aggressively. Heavier items can be packed low and forward for better mass centralization, while frequently used gear can be packed higher up for easy access. If you pack efficiently, you can carry all your essential gear in the side bags for a weekend of exploring rugged trails.

Heavier items can be packed low and forward in the side bags for better mass centralization, while frequently used gear can sit on top for easy access.

Once you have all your gear stuffed in the side bags and zipped up, everything can be tightened down further using the integrated tie-down straps that go across the center. The tie-down straps use cam buckles, making it easy to tighten down your gear. Clip closures would make access gear inside the bag more convenient but the cam-buckle design is incredibly tough and reliable.

A separate top bag provides some extra capacity (1.5 liters) — perfect for an extra set of small tool roll or medical kit. The top bag uses a zipper closure and two webbing straps secure the load to prevent any flopping. The top bag is also removable and the remaining mounting points can be utilized for strapping down a bedroll or other bulky items instead.

The removable top bag provides easy access to a small tool roll or medical kit.

We stuffed this gear in the MoJavi Saddlebag for a weekend adventure ride and there was still room to spare.

Trail Testing

Riding with the MoJavi Saddlebag left us impressed with how well it was able to spread the load and we hardly even noticed we were carrying an extra 15-20 pounds of gear on the bike. Even on technical single track or steep hill climbs, the extra weight and mass had minimal impact on performance. You might notice an occasional tap from the bags when hammering it through whoops or jumps but never enough to throw off your balance. Leg room was invaded minimally when hanging off the back of the bike on steep descents.

The MoJavi Saddlebag doesn’t limit your range of motion on technical trails and is durable enough to handle the typical falls encountered on aggressvie off-road rides.

Riding on tight single track trails with sheer cliff drop offs was no problem with the slim profiled MoJavi Saddlebag.

Final Thoughts

Anyone who has spent a long day riding off-road with an overloaded backpack knows how much it can accelerate fatigue and ruin your ride. With everything strapped down tightly, the MoJavi lets the bike do the heavy lifting without significantly affecting handling and it’s also streamlined enough to get you through a tight squeeze.

The MoJavi saddlebag withstood several falls during our testing and proved to be extremely durable. It can handle the abuse of aggressive dual sport riding and still looks good after a quick wipe down.

If you like to pack light, go fast and ride far, Giant Loop’s Mojavi bag is the ideal luggage solution. It’s big enough to carry all your essential gear for a short-term trip and small enough to help you resist overpacking. At $225 it’s a bit expensive for a bag with just 13.5 liters of volume, but it is a specialized bag and it’s built to last.

Mike is an avid explorer and accomplished, award-winning Industrial Designer. He has been obsessed with wheels, gears, gadgets and the outdoors since birth. This combination of passions have given him a unique inside perspective into the world of product design and testing. A combination of insatiable curiosity and poor impulse control have driven him to continue exploring every backroad, single track and unique destination in the Western United States.